Consolidated-Tomoka Land Stock Downgraded (CTO)

Consolidated-Tomoka Land (AMEX:CTO) has been downgraded by TheStreet Ratings from from a hold to sell.

NEW YORK ( TheStreet) -- Consolidated-Tomoka Land (AMEX: CTO) has been downgraded by TheStreet Ratings from hold to sell. The company's weaknesses can be seen in multiple areas, such as its feeble growth in its earnings per share, deteriorating net income, disappointing return on equity and generally disappointing historical performance in the stock itself.

Highlights from the ratings report include:

Despite its growing revenue, the company underperformed as compared with the industry average of 16.0%. Since the same quarter one year prior, revenues slightly increased by 7.7%. This growth in revenue does not appear to have trickled down to the company's bottom line, displayed by a decline in earnings per share.

The share price of CONSOLIDATED TOMOKA LAND CO has not done very well: it is down 10.59% and has underperformed the S&P 500, in part reflecting the company's sharply declining earnings per share when compared to the year-earlier quarter. Turning toward the future, the fact that the stock has come down in price over the past year should not necessarily be interpreted as a negative; it could be one of the factors that may help make the stock attractive down the road. Right now, however, we believe that it is too soon to buy.

The company's current return on equity has slightly decreased from the same quarter one year prior. This implies a minor weakness in the organization. Compared to other companies in the Real Estate Management & Development industry and the overall market, CONSOLIDATED TOMOKA LAND CO's return on equity significantly trails that of both the industry average and the S&P 500.

The company, on the basis of change in net income from the same quarter one year ago, has significantly underperformed when compared to that of the S&P 500 and the Real Estate Management & Development industry. The net income has significantly decreased by 432.1% when compared to the same quarter one year ago, falling from $0.08 million to -$0.26 million.

CONSOLIDATED TOMOKA LAND CO has exprienced a steep decline in earnings per share in the most recent quarter in comparison to its performance from the same quarter a year ago. The company has reported a trend of declining earnings per share over the past two years. During the past fiscal year, CONSOLIDATED TOMOKA LAND CO swung to a loss, reporting -$0.10 versus $0.14 in the prior year.

Consolidated-Tomoka Land Co., through its subsidiaries, engages in real estate, income properties, and golf operations. Its real estate operations include land sales and development, agricultural operations, and leasing properties for oil and mineral exploration. Consolidated-Tomoka has a market cap of $167.9 million and is part of the financial sector and real estate industry. Shares are up 0.6% year to date as of the previous trading day's close.